Expedition Team

After a few days, the expedition team was ready to set off. This time, Huvel could leave the wall of Boswel openly with the permission letter of the King. Captain Mylan Pierre was reluctant to allow the team to exit the wall. He knew how dangerous the jungle was but he could not convince Huvel to not go. And he could not offer to help either since he did not receive an order to do so.

Nevertheless, the team entered the jungle with excitement on everyone's face. The two weapon masters were the most nervous. They knew that they were the strongest in the team and they were not confident that they could leave the jungle alive.

Both of them understood that their lords had discarded them like pawns the moment they were ordered to accompany Viscount Senebres into the jungle. The marquises could not hide their happiness when heard Viscount Senebres would be going into Emmele Jungle. Everyone in the houses of the marquises could tell that the viscount knew the weakness of their lords and that said weakness was fatal enough for their lords to submit everything.

The two knights lost their trust in their lords and they also hated the viscount for making them suffer. They had already made up their mind to abandon the expedition team and running away if they encounter a monster they could not win.

"Although there was a big chance that I might be punished severely as a deserter, there might be a way out as long as I lie my way out," they both thought.

-----

The expedition proceeded slower than everyone thought. Huvel ordered the woodcutters to clear the trees in the way they would go and the labourers to clear the path after the trees were cut down. The whole team was shocked by Huvel's order. They thought the viscount was too ignorant and arrogant.

Despite their opinions, Huvel had a clear goal in his mind. The main objective of the expedition was not to hunt monsters but to pave a road. He had already thought of going into the jungle again from time to time so if a road was paved the future expeditions would become much more convenient and easier. The Flying Leaf Nymph would mark the places around the road just like monsters marked their territories. Since the nymph was an existence that monsters normally avoid, his marks would have a certain level of effect.

While some people were working to clear the path, Huvel divided the soldiers and mercenaries into small groups and tasked them to stand guard in turn. Moreover, he covered a wide area with his [Dark Shroud] so he was not afraid of monster ambush. He would have sufficient time to make the workers fall back if a monster gets close. And in case there was a monster too strong for him to handle, the Flying Leaf Nymph who was following the team from far would help out.

The expedition team did not encounter any monster in their first day in the jungle. They spent most of the day clearing the path. As for Huvel, he rested in a tent. Unlike the first time he came, he was relaxed. In fact, he even enjoyed it. He liked the lively atmosphere around him. The night was not as scary as when he was alone with the Flying Leaf Nymph and there were even guards outside his tent so he slept soundly.

The rest of his team was the exact opposite to him. They were nervous and could not sleep as it was their first time in the infamous jungle. As a result, they were not energetic the next day. The workers continued their job sloppily. When Huvel ordered them to take a break, it was almost noon. Not long after that, a huge squirrel appeared near their campsite!

"Monster!"

All the hired soldiers and mercenaries got into formation to fight the squirrel monster. The workers murmured in relief in the back.

"Oh god! It would have been dangerous if that monster came while we were working!" exclaimed a worker.

"Thank goodness, the lord allowed us to rest early. If not, we might be eaten by that monster!" said another.

"It's too early to be relieved yet," a young man said nervously. "That monster looks intimidating although it is only around the size of a teenager. What should we do if the soldiers lost?"

"Idiot!" an older man scolded him. "Don't you see the viscount's relaxed face? If he thinks it is dangerous, he would run away immediately. Since he did not, I'm sure the soldiers can kill that monster!"

"Easy for you to say. What if the lord just doesn't know how strong the monster is?" the young man retorted.

Huvel heard some of the workers' conversations. But he did not pay attention to it and focus on the monster. He casted [Weakness] and [Confusion] on the monster. The spells did not make projectiles but directly affected the target so no one knew that the monster was under the spells. Although there were two magicians, they were only at the 2nd-circle. Their mana perception was too low to detect Huvel's spells.

The monster under debuffs could not display its full strength. The recruits got the upper hand over time and finally killed it! Three mercenaries got light wounds but the rest of them were unharmed. The two knights that led the battle were perplexed. They had never thought that a battle against the monsters would be that easy.

"V… Victory!" one knight shouted and everyone else follow suit.

The gloomy atmosphere of the team became brighter after that battle. Huvel ordered the chefs he brought to cook the monster's meat. All expedition team members got a share of the meat. They were all thrilled after eating the meat. Not only was the meat unusually delicious, they were full of energy after eating it.

Among the recruits, except the knights, all of them were too poor that they could not have meat as their meal. Getting to meat cooked by the chefs of the lord – and rare and special monster meat at that – was probably the biggest reward they could get from the expedition.